Pyroclastic Fury
by Krakatau
Summary: Just a little story about my superhero persona I created with the help of my friends from Skiffytown, inspired by the SciFi or should I say 'syfy? *gags* reality show "Who Wants To Be A Superhero?". Set in San Francisco and surrounding areas. : Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

Pyroclastica whipped around the corner of Bay onto Hyde street, perched on a pair of sleek new rollerblades. Her movements were swift and tight as she grabbed the bumper of a taxi and used it as leverage to swing herself uphill to a minivan, from which she swung again to a luxury car of some sort.

She peaked the hill on the corner of Hyde and Lombard, and used her vantage point to survey the steep hill and straight line of Lombard as it shot west toward Golden Gate Park. Already the lights and sirens of the police cruisers marked the chase, the dark sedan that was their quarry ducking dangerously in and out of the evening traffic.

Pyroclastica tipped herself over the edge, and crouched like a downhill skier as she bladed down the steep street. She dodged expertly in and out of traffic, ignoring the honks and angry yells, intent on reaching the black sedan before it was able to cross over the Golden Gate Bridge into the North Bay.

As Lombard leveled out at Van Ness, she used the amazing momentum she'd gained to springboard over a bus, and grabbed at the electrical cables overhead with her gloved right hand to swing herself out of the way of an RV. She skated over the top of it, dropped down on the other side, and sped down the middle lane west-bound, dodging in between lanes and cars. She passed the police cruisers one by one, and made sure she caught the chief's eye as she moved forward, between them and the black sedan.

They entered Golden Gate Park. The sedan screeched its way around one police barrier, and then used its on-board psionic guns to blast through another. Pyroclastica cut her way through the park, using the paved walkways and winding roads she was growing ever more familiar with. She was able to spit out just behind the sedan as he continued on 101 North, and had to dodge the debris the black sedan left behind.

She was finally able to get a clear patch and burst forward, sliding between the sedan and the concrete medium, and then leaping and grinding on the median as the sedan tried to crush her. From here, she leapt onto the top of the sedan and dropped to her knees, her left hand gripping the corner of the roof as the sedan jimmied in an attempt to throw her.

Holding on tight with her left hand, she pulled her glove off with her teeth and plunged her right hand flat against the roof of the sedan. The shining black roof of the car glowed red beneath her touch, and smoke rose as it gave way in a liquid, gooey mess, her arm plunging in as if she'd pushed through wet tissue paper.

The driver grabbed her elbow, past the lava-touch of her hand, and yanked hard, causing her head to smack against the roof. She lost her grip with her left and and started to slide off, but grabbed onto the roof with her right. It melted away, leaving an open strip, and yielded to her touch instead of giving her the purchase she needed. In a last minute effort to save herself from being spilled onto the street, she grabbed the door handle and held on tight. She dodged one effort to smash her into the barrier, but she noticed the child inside the car pressed against the glass, looking at her desperately, hopefully, and she missed as the car neared the toll plaza; an impressive barricade had been set up, and the bridge had been nearly emptied as they had made their way toward it. The sedan used its psionics to easily blast a hole in the barricade, the police officers guarding it diving aside for their lives, and the car scraped its side against the ragged edge, causing Pyroclasica to let go and tumble away, leaving steaming pock marks in the road each time her right hand hit the pavement.

She stood and watched as it made its way across the bridge. The police gathered behind her, watching, wondering. She was scowling.

"So, that's how you want to play? Fine." She rolled over to the side of the bridge and grabbed onto one of the thick vertical cables with her right hand. It burned through, snapping with a metallic TWANG. Pyroclastica pulled her glove back on and grabbed the cable like a vine, sliding carefully onto the outer catwalk and pausing a moment, and then blading quickly south before leaping off the bridge, swinging around and north on the cable, and let go and somersaulted through the air to land in front of the sedan, rip her glove off, and thrust it deep into the heart of the engine as it came to a screeching halt in front of her.

It died, the hole she had made still glowing incandescent and smoking as she pulled her hand out and put her glove back on. She quirked her head as the driver's side door opened.

"Hot enough for ya, Yori Bekhoff?" She smirked.

The tall, scarred Russian that stepped from the car regarded her as more of an annoyance than anything else, and held a smaller version of the sedan's psionic weapon in one hand. The other hand he had clenched on the arm of the young girl he had kidnapped.

"You think you've won, don't you?" He snarled at her.

"Uh, it would appear that way, yeh. There's a barricade on the other side of the bridge, too, and the police are coming up from the south right now, and sorry about your car, man, looks like the engine died." She gave a non-committal shrug, and then dropped all pretense. "Now hand over the girl and I won't be forced to high-five your face."

"I will never turn my greatest experiment to the likes of you!" He retorted, and suddenly looked up. Pyroclastica had become increasingly aware of a hovering helicopter, but had thought it was one of the news stations. What she saw when she looked up was a black, unmarked helicopter that was dropping a line down to Bekhoff and his quarry. She started toward them, but he got off a shot from his psionic gun, causing Pyroclastica to dodge and stumble.

"You idiot!" She seethed through clenched teeth as she rose. He had dropped the gun, probably a one time use, and had hoisted the girl to him before grabbing onto the ladder.

"Send my regards too your mother!" He called as the helicopter rose, taking him up and out of the cage of suspension cables and west towards the open ocean.

Pyroclastica, going more on impulse than anyhting else, bladed to the edge, ripping off her glove and discarding it on the roadway, and then grabbed another cable, and swung out over the water. She let go and reached for the runners of the helicopter, thinking she had enough momentum, but she fell short and it tacked away at the last minute. She had one glimpse of it retreating, the heavy throbbing of the rotary blades fading, and then she turned her attention to the rapidly approaching water.

"Oh, *****."

She held her right hand in front of her and cringed. She hit the surface in a big boiling steaming ball, white rising and wisping up towards the bridge where the police had gathered to watch in anticipation

Beneath the water, she had curled up into a fetal position, holding her breath. Her hand continued to glow in the cracks between the hardening black  
pieces of lava cooled by the bay water. Still, it was hot enough to steam and boil the water around it, causing a constant stream of bubbles to emit from it and wiggle their way to the surface. After a moment, Pyroclastica followed, pausing only to discard her troublesome Rollerblades, burning through the laces and part of the blades with her right hand, and then she kicked to the surface. A tugboat was coming around to collect her as two police choppers were seen in the distance, pursuing the escaped kidnapper.

Once on the tugboat, her glove in place and a blanket thrown over her shoulders, she sat down with the police chief.

He handed her a cup of tea.

"Ah, you remembered." She said, taking a sip.

"Everyone drinks coffee." he said. "You stick out like an ice pick at a balloon-animal convention for your predilection for tea."

"Oh, so its not just the hair and costume?"

The police chief sighed heavily as he sat beside her. "Bekhoff has really crossed the line, this time."

"Where is he taking her?"

"Oh, who knows? We're still trying to unencrypt those files you were able to steal last month."

"Still?!"

"His encryptions are strong stuff, Py! Ive got my best men working on it, and heaven knows there's plenty for them to do besides!"

Pyroclastica sipped thoughtfully at her tea. "He was headed west, right?"

"Nearly due. I've got my men on him, but he's given us the slip before. Why, do you know something?"

Pyroclastica gave a small shrug. "Not really, but I've known other villains who have taken a liking to volcanic lairs and empty-magma-chamber hideouts, and he was headed very nearly in the direction of Hawaii."

"So you think he's going there?"

She smiled. "Not only do I think so, but I desperately hope so; that would completely be my element!"

"I see what you mean ..."

"But I'd better get some different transportation; I don't care how good the maneuverability is with those roller blades, they hung me down in the end. Isn't there something I could put on and remove at will? Or how about a fancy car, can I have a fancy car?"

"Well, I've been working with our finances department, and I was able to get you something. It's not much, and it's not quite fancy, but I think it'll do the trick."

"Great, that's awesome! I can tweak it out later, show me!"

Once they got back to The City, the police chief took her to the main garages. "We've already had it painted to match your costume, although we hesitated at putting your logo on it; didn't want to make it too noticeable."

"Understandable."

"We'll be sending it with you when you continue on to Hawaii. Pyroclastica, meet the Pyromobile;"

They rounded the corner with a flourish and Pyroclastica stopped dead in her tracks. At first she couldn't respond, thinking it was a joke and waiting for the punchline, but the silence that stretched on into awkwardness confirmed her fears that he was actually serious. Her hand pulsed.

"You mean to say ..." She said evenly, through clenched teeth, "that my superhero car ... my vehicle to aid justice ... is a SMART CAR?! Any villain could sneeze that thing into smithereens!"

"What? Oh, come on now, be reasonable! It's been a hard year ..."

"Fine. I'll take it, but I want to be assured that you and your department will do whatever it takes to kill any snickering, okay? I don't want to end up the laughing stock of the hero world because my superhero car is the size of a peanut."

The Police Chief sighed. "Why don't you just ... take it out for a spin, okay? Nab some small time crooks, get a feel for it. I think you'll be amazed by the maneuverability and tight spots it can fit into ..."

"Fine. Fine fine fine! I can't believe this ..." She climbed into the not-quite-big-enoug-to-be-a-car-car and started the engine, then drove off into the night filled with nothing but disappointment at not being able to nab Bekhoff and save the young girl, and embarrassment at now having to patrol the City in a glorified scooter.


	2. Chapter 2

Pyroclastica's first stop that night was to her mechanic friend in San Carlos. Jerry looked over the SMART Car with an impressed air.

"So are superheroes trying to conserve energy as well? You are one of the bigger 'save the Earth' groups, aren'tchya?"

"I'd been hoping for a Lotus or a Maserati." Py admitted. "No way for me to look impressively 'super' in that, is there?"

"Is it all about looking cool? I thought it was about getting the bad guy, finding the lost kittens, that sort of thing ..."

"Jerry! You know that half the importance of a superhero is the costume alone; transportation is right up there! People see Batman zipping by in his hot little concept car and they're thinking 'wow, now this guy is going to get things done!' and then they see me in my ... my ..."

"Gas-efficient, parking efficient, small-spaces efficient SMART Car?"

"No, my breadbox on wheels."

Jerry laughed, and then smacked a heavy hand on Py's shoulder. "You leave her with me. I'll give her some non-standard options that'll get you back in the game."

"Can you make it twice as long, half as tall, and able to go 200 MPH and turn on a dime?"

"No, but I can guarantee you it'll be awesome."

"Alright then, I leave her in your hands."

Pyroclastica left the garage as her alter ego, Cat Krakatau, and grabbed a Subway sandwich for dinner before heading to the train station. The whole way home she tried to figure out what Yori Bekhoff was up to. He'd been causing trouble the previous month with the local animal shelters and humane societies, giving the volunteers the idea that he was involved in some rather nasty experimentations.

She'd been able to sneak into his lair and extract a few computer files, but the police department, as of yet, hadn't been able to crack the encryption. Py was intensely curious to find out why and when he'd gone from animals to people.

She had reached her apartment and was just about to put the key in the lock when a voice in her head caused her to jump and yelp in surprise.

_You had better have some french fries or something, otherwise don't even consider coming in!_

Py regained herself, shook her head, and then unlocked the door and entered.

"Coulee, I wish you'd wait until I at least got in the door to talk to me." She replied to the light brindled Basenji that bounced around her legs.

_Come on, you can't have everything! I don't complain when you're gone, you don't complain when I catch you unawares!_

"But I should complain when you startle me so much I nearly cause a scene."

_Just say you saw a mouse or something. You humans are always to jumpy!_

"Look who's talking, little-miss-OH-EM-GEE-a-bag-just-moved!"

Coulee stopped wiggling and looked at her levelly. _I'm not that bad and you know it. Now come on; lets go! I want to stretch my legs ..._

"Were going, we're going, don't worry ..." Py slipped a collar over Coulee's neck and snapped a leash to it, and then took her the second of two lengthy, daily walks. Coulee did her sniffing and peeing and various other doggie habits, if in a somewhat more dainty and dignified manner. They did not talk during this time, out in public, but once they were back at home their minds became a battleground.

_You let him slip away?!_

"Wha-? No! I didn't 'let' him do anything! There was a freaking Helicopter, how am I supposed to deal with that?"

_You could have melted the rotors, or the line, or something!_

"He shot at me -"

_You're always getting shot at, melt the bullets._

"-with a psionic weapon."

Here Coulee did not comment, but merely flicked an ear in consideration. _Does he realize what would happen if you were hit with a powerful enough psionic blast?_

"I can only assume so; before I knew of his experiments, we'd had a conversation about implementing psionics to trigger micro-quakes to relieve some of the tension along the San Andreas fault. He said the same kind of thing was already being used in Italy on Vesuvius."

_And the effects?_

"Enough that they're continuing it."

_Okay, so he knows that psionics can be used to trigger, in small increments, seismic activity that would otherwise build to a fairly destructive head._

"Yes."

_Can we assume, then, that he understands the implications of using a similar blast on an object of seismic capabilities _not _the size of a mountain?_

Pyroclastica snarked, "I think he's smart enough to realize the disproportionate use of psionics on me as opposed to Vesuvius."

_Fair enough. Either way, this is not a good development._

"Not at all."

_And the girl, you said he had a girl with him?_

"He did. She was in his offices when the police got there. He grabbed her, gave them the slip, and then I was contacted. She didn't seem willing, but wasn't particularly struggling or making any sort of attempt at escape."

_Sometimes on gets too scared to move._

"It wasn't just that, there was something else ... I cant quite describe it, though, it was like ... the way she held her head, or the look in her eyes, or something ... it was just ... different."

_Hm, I would have had to be there. _She gave Pyroclastica an accusatory look.

"Would if I could, but I was called out of work."

_Ah, bet they didn't like that at all._

"No, but they were a little more understanding this time. I think the migraine excuse might work."

_For a little while, but they're all going to start suggesting medicines and doctors and odd homeotherapy treatments and before you know it, you'll be dangling from your feet over a circle of herbs with lemon halves duct-taped to your head._

Pyrclastica looked at Coulee with a WTF expression . "I don't know where you get your ideas, dog."

The following day Pyroclastica and Coulee answered a call from the chief of police, who was inspecting the after-effects of a fire and trying to find how it started and whether or not it was intentional. The three, the chief, Pyroclastica, and Coulee, walked the perimeter of the burnt-shell of a warehouse that had at one time held computer goods for one of the major chains.

"When did this happen?" Py asked.

"About 4:30 this morning. There really wasn't much left when emergency crews arrived. They're going to have an arson dog come out probably in the next day or so, once things have had a chance to cool down. That should help us immensely."

_Ugh, tell him not to use Molly; I had to work with her last time and she's a complete dunderhead. Great nose, but has absolutely no grasp of the human concepts. Trying to have a conversation with her was like trying to talk to an animated toaster._

"Uhm, okay, chief; Coulee would prefer you to use some dog other than Molly."

The Chief looked down at Coulee, frowning. Coulee looked levelly back at him, squinting through her purple mask as if in disapproval.

"Well, I can't guarantee anything, but I'll see what I can do."

_See that he does. Oooo, incoming! _Coulee looked up at the Chief a moment before his pager went off.

"Who is it?"

"The department. They've cracked part of those files. Lets go."

At the police headquarters, they poured over the screen that showed them Yori Bekhoff's files. For several long moments, no one spoke.

_You humans do spend an awful lot of time staring at those screens. What is it this time? 'I can has brain tumor'?_

Pryoclastica signed, frowning. "No, Coulee. These were supposed to hold important information about what Yori Bekhoff was up to, but ... it's just a bunch of lists."

"Not even interesting lists at that." The young intern manning the computer added. "'Eggs, Milk, Mangoes ... I would have liked to see a few favorite movie or music lists; that might have given us an idea on weaknesses!"

The Police Chief, Py, and Coulee all glared at the intern, who cowered.

"Wha-what?"

Py dismissed his theory with a wave. "It won't help us any to know whether or not he preferred J.K. Rowling or Faulkner. What we need to know is what he's doing with that girl and why he wanted all those animals early last month."

"Well, this is just one small part; hopefully there will be some more relevant information in the remaining encrypted sections." The Chief suggested.

"One can only hope." They left the intern to continue his attempts at breaking the encryption, and wandered out of earshot. "Any news from your copters? Found out where he's headed?"

The Chief shook his head. "Doesn't look like it's Hawaii, although I think he wanted us to believe that. I've sent the word there to keep on the look out, in case he does make an appearance, and have asked the surrounding regions to notify us at once if he's spotted."

"Just my luck; he'll have some totally impenetrable underwater hideout at the bottom of the Pacific."

"Hey, don't you work well under pressure?" The Chief smirked. Py glared at him.

"Yeah, thanks. Keep me posted."

She and Coulee continued on their daily patrols, knocking down purse thieves and melting the tires on getaway vehicles, leaving bank robbers forlornly without a quick escape. It wasn't until evening that her goggles displayed the tiny blinking symbol that indicated she was needed.

"Ready, Coulee?"

Coulee wiggled in response. _Lets get the real action started! I was beginning to think this day was a bust!_

They arrived to find the Chief ready to go, standing half-out of his patrol car while the others were starting their engines.

"He's on the North Bay; had to land his helicopter for refueling. They've got their force there already, but they're not sure how long they can hold him!"

"Alright, we're on it!"

Suddenly, there was a honking, and they turned to see a black, red, and purple SMART Car zigging and zagging its way towards them. It came to a screeching stop infront of Coulee, and sat, rumbling like a tiger with its new, souped up engine. It also had an extra set of wheels on the back, which looked like they could run up walls, and there seemed to be the impression of wings, tucked into an added part on the roof.

Jerry got out. "Looks like I found you just in time! The radio scanner works, at least! Everything has worked in the test run, good luck with it out on the road!"

"Is there an instruction manual?" The Chief asked sceptically, sounding everything like a father.

"I'll figure it out." Pyroclastica gave him a wave an turned her attention back to Jerry and the SMART Car, getting into the driver's seat as he vacated it. Coulee leapt over her lap and settled comfortably in the passenger's seat. "Wings? It flies?"

"And it's a submersible, and it's bullet proof, and --"

Pyroclastica looked about at all the new buttons and knobs, and pushed one with a fire emblem. Fifteen foot jets of flame shot out the front and nearly singed the Chief's car. He leapt away with a yelp.

"--it shoots fire."

Py clapped her hands in giddy excitement. "Oh, this is wonderful! Jerry, you rock! Thanks!"

"No problem! Now; go get those bad guys!"

Pyroclastica needed no other urging and closed the door, revved the engine, and zipped out and into traffic, hopping from lane to lane. The Chief would have sworn he could hear her laughing madly. He turned to Jerry.

"If anything happens, I'm blaming you." He said. Jerry shrugged.

"Stop treating her like a little kid; not only is she a Super, she's nearly thirty."

"She acts like she's twelve." The Chief replied, getting into his car. He gave one last look at Jerry, and then turned the ignition and set the sirens.


	3. Chapter 3

Meanwhile, along 101 North, dodging in and out of traffic with ease ...

"I don't get it, why would Bekhoff come back?"

_They said he needed to refuel._

"That's ridiculous! Why would he need to, and why come back to North Bay to do it, didn't he realize we'd just be waiting for him?"

_Perhaps he wasn't prepared to leave. You did catch him off guard, yes?_

"Well, yeah, I guess ... you know, I don't think the police would have done anything if he had been alone. He did have that girl with him ..."

_Which, of course, makes the suspicions that much more viable._

"Yes, and I admit, the girl was odd. I cant quite place wh-GAH!" She slammed hard on the breaks as a cell-phone jockey in a SUV cut her off. "Of all the ..." Pyroclastica looked around for an out, but noticed one of the odd buttons on her dashboard were blinking.

_Normally I wouldn't advise pushing buttons, as technology only seems to be a crutch for mankind, but in this case I have to admit I'm quite curious._

"You talk too much." Pyroclastica smashed the button, and the car sprang up, and, as Py was watching out her window, something came out from underneath and covered the wheels in a bright pink, slightly sticky substance. "Jerry is a genius."

_Oh? Is it good that our transportation is now running on Pepto Bismol?_

"Watch." She drove forward, carefully (as this was her first time experimenting with her new wheels), and the car climbed up the back of the SUV, up onto the roof, and then down the hood. The offended driver honked wildly, leaning out his window and shouting obscenities about the pink goo residue that now covered his originally pristine black SUV. Py rolled he window down and yelled back; "That's for disobeying the Cell Phone Law! Get a dang headset!" She pushed the button again and the wheels were sprayed with a cleansing liquid, and they were able to speed away.

That obstacle successfully dealt with, and other cars having noticed their little stunt and politely moving out of the way, they were able to make good time across the Golden Gate Bridge and into Marin County. Another button blinked, and this time Coulee set a paw to it. A little screen popped up and the Chief's head played into view.

"Pyroclastica, can you hear me?"

"Ooo, a GPS Navigational System! This car has everything!" She smiled at Coulee. "Chief-Chief, how many miles to Bekhoff?"

"Py, he's moved on: we weren't able to hold him."

"What? Where to?"

"Last we saw he was on Highway 1 heading towards Stinson Beach."

"Got it."

"Py, be careful on those curves ..."

"Psh, got it covered." She pushed the button again and the screen descended, the image fading out from the Chief's protesting muted warnings. "Worse than my mom, geez! Okay, do we have a wing button?"

Coulee pointed with her paw, and Pyroclastica nodded. "Okay, when I give the word, push it, okay?"

_I fear for our lives._

"Oh, hush you."

They left Highway 101 for highway 1, passing Sausilito and entering the forests around Muir. Then, the trees dropped away to the left, giving them an open view of the ocean and the winding, undulating road. There was a sharp curve ahead of them, ocean to the left, mountains to the right. Pyroclastica accellerated and held the steering wheel steady.

"Okay ... NOW!"

Coulee pushed the button, and a moment later they left the road. They held their breath as they continued forward, suspended, the nose of the car dipping down as it started its' descent. They could hear the wings span out above them. They were too scared to look.

Pyroclastica had nearly muttered 'oops' when Coulee had the presence of mind to search other buttons and smack one seemingly at random. There was a shutter, and then the sound of blazing jets, and the car was officially airborne.

_I guess it's a two step process. _

"Great, that would have been good to know ahead of time."

_Interesting, coming from miss I'll-figure-it-out._

Pyroclastica choose to reply by sticking her tongue out, and then focused on finding Bekhoff. She discovered that there was a rudder, controlled by the wheel, and the gas pedal operated the jets. After a little more fiddling, she had the gear shift down for pitch and yaw, and was wheeling around with little effort.

Please try not to be so exuberant ... I'm not sure my stomach can handle everything at once. Coulee begged, her ears half-bent in a sign of discomfort.

"You're no fun!" Pyroclastica levelled out the car nonetheless, and a moment later had found Bekhoff. She hit the communication button. The screen came up blank. "Oh, I hope it's voice activated ..."

_Try it, I doubt mine will work._

"Uh ... Car! Uh, dial ... Chief?"

A moment later his face was back on the screen. "Found him?"

"Affirmative! White convertible?"

"You got him. We've got our air support in its way."

"Oh good, the choppers. They really helped last time." Py responded sarcastically. "Here I go, hold on Coulee!"

She pitched the car and sent it nearly into a nosedive, coming up next to Bekhoff for a friendly wave, and then landing infront of him. With only a slight fumble, she clicked off the jets and wings, and was soon driving normally. Coulee pushed the button to roll the window down and started to lean out.

"Can you make it alright?"

The basenji looked at her with the closest thing to a smirk. _When have you ever had need to doubt me?_

"I don't have the time to answer that." Py laughed. "Go on!"

Pyroclastica watched in the rearview mirror as Coulee leapt from the car, used the mountainside as a springboard, and landed perfectly on the passenger seat of the white convertible, where she erupted into the flaming black and red Lava Hound that always lurked under the unassuming light red brindle.

Pyroclastica laughed at Bekhoff's reaction, which was to completely spazz out and try to steer around the dog that was now in the car. He rememered their whereabouts moment later and had stopped quickly, pulling a 180 in the process. Pyroclastica did the same and stopped as well.

She got out of the car to see Bekhoff stumbling away from Coulee, who had leapt onto the hood and was digging with white-hot nails into the engine. The girl, who had been in the back seat, seemed to panic and tried to climb up the mountainside. Proclastica walked confidently toward the girl and called to her in a calm voice.

"It's okay, we're here to rescue you!"

"She won't believe a thing like that, not after that hell-hound of yours scared the sense out of her!" Bekhoff replied, sounding slightly desperate.

"Scared who, her or you?" Pyroclastica sneered. "You're trapped, admit it. The police will be here soon, they've got your copter, and, well, looks like I've accidentally ruined another one of your cars." She reached the girl and put her left hand out, and frowned as the girl looked at her hesitantly, and then sniffed her hand. Sniffed it. "What did you do to her?"

"As if I'll tell you." Bekhoff replied. He'd found a large stick and was trying to fend Coulee away, but she'd grabbed a hold of it and snapped it, leaving the end smoldering and red-hot. He poked her side, and the tip was swallowed up by the lava. She snapped at him and he stumbled back and fell on the road.

"Don't provoke her, she's capable of lava bombs." Py said, smiling.

"Ah well, it won't matter soon." Bekhoff said. He seemed to calm down some, even lightened up a little. Coulee kept guard, glaring at him, stock still and smoking.

_I don't trust him. He doesn't smell like fear._

Pyroclastica didn't know how to reply without clueing Bekhoff in on the conversation (one thing she hadn't gotten the knack of yet; communicating with Coulee the way the dog was able to communicate with her). Instead, she sat by the girl while they waited for the police. Eventually, the little girl came close and then curled up next to her, in such a way that reminded Pyroclastica strongly of a cat.

_He didn't smell like fear from the start. Surprise, agitation, but he's calm now ... almost ... content? Py, I don't trust him, I don't like this situation._

Pyroclastica looked over at her hound and noticed the strip of fire along her back that meant her hackles were raised in anxiety. Py glanced at Bekhoff, who was looking out at the ocean a little too casually.

"You don't really seem to bothered by the prospect of going to jail." She said, trying to sound light. Coulee was right; this was not a good situation.

"Oh, if I thought I'd be going to jaiil you can bet I'd be a bit more bothered."

Py sat up stright. "What makes you so sure you won't?"

Bekhoff looked at Pyroclastica and smiled in his lecherous way. "Oh? Because the police will never get here in time."

_They're coming; I can hear the rotors._

"They're really not that far off." Py said as naturally as she could.

"Doesn't matter, they're still going --"

_Earthquake coming, not a small one, either! _Coulee almost immediately turned back to a natural light-brindled Basenji in her utter fear, and dashed back to the SMARTCar

"-- to be too late." Without his guard, Bekhoff strode purposefully towards Pyroclastica and the girl. Py readied herself to defend the child, but then, just as Coulee had predicted, the ground began to shake beneath them and rocks started to tumble from above. Pyroclastica could tell two things; it was shallow, and it wasn't natural.

She lost her balance, and noticed that even Bekhoff, who had obviously been expecting this, was having trouble standing. Still, he was able to grab the girl as Py struggled, and started down the road in a tipsy sort of half-run while the shaking intensified.

Then, the mountain broke.

From the rocks a drill crashed through, and following it was what could only be described as a multi-terrain vehicle. It was massive, about three sories high, and would leave a gaping wound in the mountain. It came to a stop, and Bekhoff waved, and a hatch opened on top.

Pyroclastica stood and ran forward. "Stop! Bekhoff, you're just delaying the inevitable!"

Bekhoff ignored her for a moment, climbing the steel ladder to the hatch, and handing the girl over to his minion. "Oh, the only inevitable is your demise, I'm afraid." He said, turning back to her. She had pulled her glove off and was readying to punch the drill-vehicle, hoping to damage whatever she could. "In about three minutes, a very large lake will be coming through that hole." Bekhoff turned to his minion. "Everyting as planned?"

"Everything."

"Three minutes. Or rather, two minutes and now .... twenty-nine seconds. Enjoy your dip in the ocean!" He disappeared into the vehicle and the hatch closed. Pyroclastica had frozen to the spot at his news about draining a lake, and as the drill vehicle clumbered its way down to the ocean, she heard the rush and roar of the oncoming deluge.

_Get in the car! Lets go!_

Pyroclastica did not respond, but instead leapt infront of the new tunnel and held her right hand out, fingers splayed, and concentrated. The red cracks widened, and glowed incandescant, and then shot out a stream of orange-hot lava at the top of the tunnel. The rock began to glow and melt and drip, then stream down, and then the water hit the molten-rock curtain, and burst out onto the road. It bubbled and frothed around Pyroclascitca, the Lahar crashing over the road and then down the hill and into the surf. The drill-vehicle was already too far to be effected, but the damage was contained, and as the flow lessened, the rocks hardened again, and the tunnel was once again solid rock.

The settling lahar broke apart in the middle of the road as Pyroclastica dug her way out. As she made her way back to the SMART Car and Coulee, she heard the copters, and looked up forlornly as they rounded the corner of the hills.

Once in the car, she brought up the Chief's on her screen.

"We lost him."

"I know." He said, "I'm in the second helicopter. Are you alright? You look a little .... muddy?"

"Nothing a good boiling shower can't fix." She siaid, though without her usual grin. "I've made some new discoveries I'm not too happy about."

"Why don't you come back to headquarters and we'll see what we can't figure out?"


	4. Chapter 4

Pyroclasitica sat back in her seat, looking out at the copters as they grew closer and louder, and down at the ocean. There was no sign of the drill-machine anymore, only the still solid-mud that had come from her lahar. She looked to Coulee.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

Coulee sighed, ears drooping. _I'm thinking that whatever you're thinking is probably something that you shouldn't be thinking._

"Nonsense!" She buckled herself in, turned the car on, and started looking at the buttons in detail. "So, which one makes it a submersible?"

As Py drove over the edge of the road and down toward the ocean, her comm-screen rose, the chief's worried face in plain view.

"Pyroclastica, what are you doing?!"

"Going after him, chief."

"You can't! It's too dangerous!"

"Since when has danger ever stopped me?" She chuckled, and as they reached the water she pointedly poked the blue submersible button, and the SMART car slid easily into the surf. "I'll be fine, Cheif! I promise!"

"At least wait until I can get some sumarine backups ..."

"I'll be fine!" She repeated, smiling as she severed the connection and sent the mobile screen back into its housing. Her smile immediately faded as she took a deep breath.

_Apparently I'm not the only one that thinks this is a bad idea ... there's no shame in stepping back and reevaluating tactics ..._

"It's not that, Coulee ... up until recently I've been five steps and two weeks behind Beckhoff. Now I'm actually two steps behind him, and gaining. If I step back now, I'm going to lose all the ground I've gained."

_But what happens when we catch up to him, eh?_

"What we always do; wing it."

_Ah ... that's what I was afraid of._

The SMART submersible whirred quickly through the water. It was fairly easy to follow the trail of the drill in the seabed, the water still cloudy and thick where it had passed. Py was able to skirt on top of this destruction and follow.

They continued further and deeper into the Pacific Ocean. The car creaked with the increased pressure, and Coulee looked nervously out the windows, quivering and circling.

_Py, please, just take me back, please .. this is far too much water for my taste ... it's so .... close ... and watery!_ Her tail was plastered between her legs and her ears were flat against her head, giving her a pleading, desperate look. Py pursed her lips.

"We're superheroes, Coulee. It comes with risk."

_Risk I can handle. It's water that I don't like._

""This is strange ..." Py cirled up and then down, and ran the perimeter of a large cloud of sediment that had arisen. "I wonder if they're digging ..."

Suddenly there was a _whoosh_ and the SMART car rocked with impact as something struck the side. The occupants could hear rushing water and creaking metal as they were quickly dragged towards the mud cloud.

_Py!_

"Harpoon, they're taking us in ... I can't do anything! If I tear free ... we'll ... oh ***** .."

_Should I say 'I told you so' now or wait until we're actually in their grasp?_ Coulee growled.

Even Pyroclastica was beginning to feel anxious, gripping on to the seat and turning every which way to watch as they were consumed by the mud cloud. The car moaned ominously as they were dragged downward, and Pyroclastica wasn't at all sure that it would last much longer. She started to hyperventilate, her right hand pulsed, glowing through its' protective glove.

Then there was a metallic groaning, a clang, and the sound of draining water. The car stopped creaking. They settled on solid ground, and eventually the water around them streamed away to reveal in inside of an enormous steel hangar. The water was still a few inches deep then multiple doors opened and armed guards streamed in and surrounded the vehicle.

_Okay, start thinking on the fly, Genius._ Coulee grumbled.

They remained in the car, even as Yori Beckhoff himself strode confidently into the bay, stepping past the circle of guards. He stood in front of Pyroclastica and smiled at her. She could not return the gesture; she was feeling far too much like a deer cornered by hounds.

"Why don't you come out of there, Ms. Pyroclastica, and grant me the honor of your presence for dinner?"

Pyroclastica offered him a different gesture, crass as it was, the only reply that came into her head at that moment.


	5. Chapter 5

Yori Bekhoff shook his head, smiling, and then opened the door like a gentleman and offered his hand to Pyroclastica.

"Please, in my dwellings, you are a guest."

Py watched him carefully. Beside her, Coulee growled.

_He smells like arrogance._

Py cast Coulee a quick glance, then left the car, being careful to keep her distance from Bekhoff. Coulee hopped out the driver's side as well, and circled behind Py. The hair all along her spine was raised, the tips flickering with white fire.

"Follow me.' Bekhoff said. He turned and headed out of the hangar, giving his guards a dismissing wave. Py looked down at Coulee, and then the two hesitantly followed. They were joined by two trailing guards. The door closed behind them as the small troup stepped into one of the many corridors. It snaked about, small portholes looking out into the dark deep of the ocean.

_I'm so glad we went with your rock-solid plan of plans, Almighty Planner!_ Coulee said sarcastically. _What was Cheif thinking, implying we couldn't handle ourselves? Obviously he doesn't know what brilliant geniuses we are, to go and get ourselves captured and held hostage! Silly him!_

"Please, shut up." Py said under her breath. _I've really got to figure out how to talk to her without using my voice._

"Excuse me?"

"I said, where are we going?"

"To my quarters, for a celebratory glass of wine."

Py stopped at once. "Celebrating what, might I ask?"

Bekhoff turned, smiling. It sent shivers up Py's spine, and she felt a wave of heat from Coulee. "Several things, actually. My experiments are reaching a successful completion, I just bought a third summer home in Fiji, and ... I have you." He had approached her slowly, and she clenched her fists and tried to maintain control.

"What experiments are you talking about? What did you do to that girl?" Py asked through clenched teeth. She tried to ignore the fact that Bekhoff was uncomfortably close now. Her right hand pulsed, and she could feel the radiating heat travel up her arm. If she wasn't careful, if she didn't maintain control ...

"Perhaps in good time, I'll tell you." He said. He reached up and brushed a strand of hair away from her face.

Py snapped. In one fluid movement, she ripped her glove off, dropped it, and grabbed Bekhoff with her left hand. In the next moment, she flung herself behind him, successfully blocking the guards who had rushed in a moment too late. Coulee leapt in between as well, spiking the fire along her spine. Py held her cracked, glowing lava hand by Bekhoff's face as she gripped his arm and held it firmly behind his back with her left hand. She trembled slightly with fear and fury.

"Feel that, Yori? Feel the heat? I can melt _cars_, I can met _buildings_, I can melt the very living _mountains_. Even your thick skull will pose no resistance if I slip."

Bekhoff did not answer for a moment, taking deep breaths and eyeing the glowing cracks as it hovered about a foot in front of his face. Even at that distance he felt the radiating heat, and began to perspire. "You really think you can escape if you kill me?" He replied evenly, picking his words carefully. "You are drastically outnumbered."

_He's scared,_ Coulee said, _but not as terrified as I think he should be. Be wary!_

"Fine." Py shoved him forward. He barely missed tripping over Coulee, who let her flames diminish while she dodged behind Py. "How about this, then?" Py held her right hand up near the wall. The paint began to bubble.

"I don't think even you could survive what happened if you breached this underwater facility."

"Perhaps not, but it would certainly stop you from your perversions."

"Now really, how can you call them that when you don't even know what they are?"

"Perhaps I'm just uneasy with the fact that you won't _tell_ me what they are. If you're not ashamed of carrying them out, than you shouldn't be ashamed of telling anyone." Py was having a hard time concentrating. behind her, Coulee cowered.

_Take it easy, Py ... we shouldn't go like this, not yet, not now ..._

Bekhoff was silent for a moment, and then carefully approached, slowly, one step at a time, and spoke in a smooth, steady voice. "Perhaps you are right. Perhaps I should explain to you what my intentions are, if not the specifics. It is so hard for a good scientist to get a leg up in this world, you know ... you come up with one good idea and before you know it, *poof!* It's in someone else's hands and the royalties in their bank account. It can be very frustrating, I assure you ..."

_Careful, careful ..._ Coulee said

"Okay, so someone stole your --"

_There's someone behind us! Pyroclastica, look out!_

Before Py had a chance to react, a psionic blast hit her back and caused her legs to buckle. She called out in surprise, pain erupting in her head. She was vaguely aware of Bekhoff dodging forward and grabbing her right arm, making sure her her un-gloved hand didn't come in contact with anything. The cracks in her hand widened, and lava dripped out and down her arm. She heard Bekhoff screaming as she lost consciousness.


	6. Chapter 6

Pyroclastica came to to find herself laying in what appeared to be a medical bay, under a stretch of fluorescent lights. She was unsurprised to find herself bound to the table, her glove literally duck taped to her right hand and set in a tub of icy water.

_Me and my great temper. She thought._

Yep, you really cracked that egg, eh?

"I thought it! I thought and you heard it?"

_Think it again, we might be monitored!_

I ... can ... what happened?

Coulee didn't answer for a moment, and Pyroclastica feared that she really hadn't learned to communicate wordlessly with her companion, but then the Basenji's voice, quite and sober, entered her mind again.

_Are you sure? It ... wasn't pretty._

I have to know. Py replied.__

Well ... someone came from behind. They had that weapon you described to me; the psionic one. I ... they were aiming at your head. I bit them in the ankle, so that was a small victory.

I remember Bekhoff grabbing me ...

You were leaking ... he ... his hand, he ... Py heard Coulee snort. He obviously wasn't aware just how strongly you're effected by psionics. Yeah, they may be your greatest weakness, but they can be your enemies' undoing as well.

Is he alright?

You can ask him yourself, here he comes now.

"Ah, you're awake."

Pyroclastica's eyes had been darting across the ceiling during her mental conversation with Coulee, but now she looked over as Bekhoff entered and sat by her bed. His arm was heavily bandaged and slung against his side, but even through the gauze and tape, she could tell that there was a considerable amount missing.

"So, how are those psionic experiments on Vesuvius going, anyway?'

He chuckled, "They abandoned them recently; too much adverse seismic activity. If I had only kept up with the geological community closer, I would have known that in time to spare my hand."

"I should say I'm not sorry," Py said, staring him straight in the eyes. "but I am, and it's not even my fault ..."

"Your fault? Who removed the glove?"

"I was bluffing! I didn't think you'd be stupid enough to pull a psionic weapon on me!" She sighed in exasperation and laid her head back on the pillow, closing her eyes. "I've prided myself that I had never hurt another human being, okay? These powers of mine ... sometimes ..."

_Don't say it! This is not the revelation to be making to your sworn enemy, numbskull!_

I have to. He lost his hand for me ...

No he didn't! Not for you, don't you realize?! For his own sake, his own underwater sanctum! Without someone holding your arm up, we all would have gone down! He wasn't thinking of you!

Pyroclastica looked back at Bekhoff. He was frowning, and looking from her to Coulee. He cocked an eyebrow.

"What?" Py asked.

"Nothing ...You were saying?"

Don't do it, Py! Just don't do it!

Pyroclastica took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She felt tears stings the corners.

"Sometimes I'm afraid of my own powers."

_Idiot._

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Oh, why not? You've got me, completely and utterly; I doubt I'll be seeing the light of day! You're probably just trying to decide how to get rid of me without destroying your whole colony or whatever. What I should be doing is wreaking utter chaos, but I'm too damned moral for that sort of destruction." She turned away from him, and saw a dark porthole and focused on it.

A dark form swam by, just barely visible.

"You assume I would destroy life?"

She looked back at him. "You mean you don't? What about all those shelter animals last month; what happened to them?"

He leaned back in his chair, looking smug. "Maybe I should show you what's been going on ..."

_The porthole! There's something out the porthole! Py, look!_

Trying to appear discreet, and at the same time trying to muse out Bekhoff's riddle, Py turned her attention again to the porthole. A penguin smiled back at her.

She frowned. Was that a _cigar_in its' mouth?!

"Maybe you should ..." She said as she looked back at Bekhoff. _I think ... It can't be ..._

What?

I think it's Prime Penguin ...

"Very well, but it will be just you; your little friend must remain here, and I hope you don't mind being slightly restrained?"

"At this point, I sort of expect it." She gave a little smile, hoping that she didn't look as optimistic as she felt with the little bubble of hope rising in her gut.

_Coulee ..._

Don't worry, I know what you're thinking, and this time I like it!


	7. Chapter 7

Bekhoff motioned in a guard, who unbound Pyroclastica from her bed, and then shackled her right hand to a chain belt about her waist.

"You did not think I could let you roam free, did you?"

"No, can't say I'm surprised." She replied. A thick knot of worry had formed in her throat and was making it hard to talk, and think.

Coulee watched wordlessly for a few moments, then let her thoughts be heard.

_Py, are you going to be alright?_

_I certainly hope so._

_What do you want me to do?_

_If you can look out the porthole, see if you can't make contact with Prime, find out what he's planning._

Coulee let out an audible grunt. _Forgetting, of course, that I can only communicate with you … you're still a dumbass._

"What are you smiling about?" Bekhoff asked, bemused.

Py shook her head, resisting the urge to look back at Coulee. "Just, you know … thinking about the absurdity of me being here."

"It was bound to happen sometime; you were far too determined to catch me up to let up for one moment."

"Heh, look where it's gotten me."

"Hopefully your mind will be changed after our little tour. Shall we?" He ushered her out of the medical bay, the guard following some distance behind.

_Good luck._ Coulee said.

_Thanks, Hekla knows I need it!_

Coulee watched her human disappear around the corner, and stood with ears perked, listening intently as the footsteps echoed away. This was a horrible environment for her; the echoes seemed to bounc off of everything. She flicked her ears and waited, then, once assured she was alone, she turned and agilely hopped onto a seat near the outer wall and then looked out the porthole.

Everythind was deep dark see beyond it; the choking blackness of water, the only thing visible besides her own, worried-brow expression were tiny motes, highlighted by some outer flood light.

Her curly tail began to unfurl, her tiny hope fading fast.

Then, her keen, sighthound-eyes picked up movement. A subtle black mass against the black sea, but enough for her tail to quirk back into a ful curl and her ears to pitch so far forward her forehead nearly resembled a Shar Pei.

A sort of annoyed grumble rolled around her her throat as the shape slid out of view again, but then suddenly Prime was there, staring back at her.

_Holy Lava Bombs!_ Coulee was startled right off of her perch, but quickly negotiated the chair and the wall again to stare back at him.

_Can you understand me?_ She asked hopelessly.

"I don't know if you can understand me or not, but if you can, go open the 4B docking pod. I'll be waiting, and reinforcements are on their way." His cigar wobbled in his beak as he talked, though somehow managing to stay put and lit even in these deep reaches of the ocean. Ashes floated away and were soon no greater than the odd little sea-motes.

Then he was gone.

Coulee hopped down from her chair and looked at her restraint system. A chain made up of inch-long links hooked to her collar and bolted to a table that was, in turn, bolted to the ground. Coulee turned and crawled and nosed the chain over her head so that it lay across her back and then closed her eyes and thought of something really really annoying.

Her hackles raised, at first nothing more than dark bristly line of red and black, but quickly sparked with blue-white flames. She focused on her annoying thought, and imagined it getting more annoying. A growl accompanied the flames, and then for a quick moment the stripe down her back had turned to hot-lava. The chain fell apart, and no sooner had it hit the ground than Coulee was up and shaking herself out, looking everything like a normal Basenji again.

_And Py wonders what I do all day … a little practice in self-control would do her some good!_ She grumbled to herself. She approached the door, which had thankfully been left open. Had they seriously thought that chain would hold her?

After glancing left and right and swiveling her ears to catch any possible sound, she turned left and ran, retracing the steps they had taken to the medical bay.

The rest of Bekhoff's guards and crew seemed to be whiling their time away in the galley and rec rooms, which were full and noisy as she passed, carefully and quietly as she could. She finally reached the bay pods for Section B; a circular room off of a long hall that jutted out into five separate bays. These were much smaller than the one Py and Coulee had come in; that had been a top-loading bay more for undersea vehicles. Here, the walls were banked with aquatic suits and tubing.

There was a guard. His back was turned, and for the moment Coulee was safe. She ran in and quickly crouched behind one set of suits. Her nails had clicked on the hard surface, and the guard turned in response.

Coulee didn't move, didn't nearly breath, watching as the guard paused. He walked to the opening of the bay nearest bay and looked out the window, shook his head, and then went back to the main keypad. After he finished his task, he turned and left, closing the main bay door behind him.

Coulee sighed, and then ran over to the keypad. She grumbled in frustration; it was a standing-station, and therefore was without chairs or nearby supports. She extended herself on her hind legs and stretched her head towards the keypad, but still couldn't reach it.

Once she'd brought all fours back on the ground, she looked around her, and for a moment felt at a loss.

Then the perfect idea hit. She ran to the nearest group of aquatic suits, and grabbed firmly onto the legging of the first one she came to. Growling and whipping her head back and forth, much in the manner of her 'squeaky-toy-killer' move, she pulled back with all her strength. At first she slid uselessly on the smooth ground, but after focusing her volcano heat inot her nails she was able to find purchase, and in that manner was able to bring down one after another of the aquatic suits, and then drag them over to the keypad. There, she piled them onto each other, tugging and nosing and digging them into a step-up. It took about seven of the suits, but she was finally able to create enough of a bump to give her a good angle at the keypad.

Bekhoff's colony was not designed for stealth on the inside, so there were fortunately no codes or passwords to remember, and the keys were fairly straightforward. Coulee used her nose to open the outer hatch on Bay 4, and once she saw Prime's beak in the porthole, she closed the hatch, drained the bay, and then opened the inner hatch.

She hopped off her aquatic-suit-stool to greet the penguin as he waddled out, shaking out his cigar. Within moments it was dry and lit again, and back to waggling in his beak as he talked.

"So, we got a frantic call from your Police Chief topside, Pyroclastica alright?"

Coulee's ears flattened and she glared at Prime.

"Ah, I see; silly question. This is Py we're talkin' about!"

Coulee sat and cocked her head. _So what next? How soon until the reinforcements get here?_

Prime had climbed onto Coulee's suit-step and was looking at the keypad, then looked over at the suits and portholes. "This isn't going to work for what the troops have in mind. Anything bigger?"

Coulee popped back up and waggled her tail. _Now you're talking!_

They both turned and looked at the closed main bay door, and Coulee's tail stopped dead and then slowly unfurled. Her ears turned back in frustration.

"Looks like first we gotta get ourselves out of here, huh, dog?"


End file.
